4
Midlands Voice
www.abplgroup.com - asian Voice 26th January 2013
Keith Vaz meets father of missing Indian student Souvik Pal The Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, Keith Vaz MP, met the father of the missing Indian student Souvik Pal, who was last seen leaving a New Year’s Eve party in Manchester. The meeting was organised at the request of Mr Pal and his family. The Indian national, studying product design at Manchester Metropolitan University, was last seen at 11pm on 31st December 2012 leaving a party at the Warehouse Project on Trafford Wharf Road, less than 200m from Old Trafford Stadium. Initial enquiries have so far failed to discover his whereabouts. Mr Vaz was joined by local MP Lucy Powell at a meeting with Souvik’s father Santanu Pal at 12.30pm on the steps of Manchester Town Hall, Thursday 17th January 2013. Keith Vaz said, “It is now 17 days since Souvik’s disappearance and I am very concerned for his welfare. I have been contacted by his father Santanu Pal who is understandably extremely distressed. On Monday, I raised his disappear-
ǒ Ë ȡǓ ȡ ȡ ȡÛ Ǖ ȡ[ǔ Ǖ ȡ @@
In Brief Weak tremors shake East Midlands
Souvik’s friends from Manchester Metropolitan University holding a march to raise awareness with Souvik's father Santanu Pal (centre, front row), Rt Hon Keith Vaz, MP (right, front row) and Lucy Powell MP (left, front row)
ance with Sir Peter Fahy, Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police. It is important that the police continue to focus their efforts on locating Souvik, but the public also has an important role. I have also spoken to Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd.
Everyone seems to be working very hard but we must all try harder to locate Souvik. If anybody thinks they have any information regarding his disappearance they should immediately contact Greater Manchester Police.”
Birmingham men jailed for planning to steal £375k from Singapore investor Two Birmingham men have been jailed for their part in a plot to steal £375,000 from a wealthy foreign businessman. Mohamad Farah jailed for two and a half years for leading the plot. Farah, 27, from Aston, was aided in his crime by former Barclays worker Sahail Akram, 33, from Hockley, who was jailed for two years. Akram, who worked for Barclays Bank Wealth, allegedly passed on details of Singapore-based investment banker Amit Prakash to Farah, and other gang members, a local newspaper has reported. Their plot was foiled when one of the crooks tried to impersonate Mr Prakash and got his security questions wrong. Farah later managed to dupe bank bosses out of £5,000 by telling them he had inside information about the source of the leak and claiming that he would pass this on to newspapers if they did not pay him.
ȡ ɍ ȯ Ǔ ǒƨ ȡ ȡ Ǖ Ĥ Û ȯ × Ǔ ȡ ǐ @
Prosecutor Richard Hearnden told the court: “The caller was confident about answering the security questions. The first question was to confirm two digits from his five digit security code. “The fraudster had no idea and guessed, incorrectly, saying he had forgotten. “He also knew if he was asked alternative questions he was able to answer, including the date of birth.” But the fraudsters apparently did not realise that Mr Prakash had recently notified the bank that he had moved house in Singapore. When asked about the ‘previous home address’, the fraudster gave the wrong answer and was asked to come into the office to continue the authorisation process. “You could say the game was up,” said Mr Hearnden. “He agreed to do this but didn’t turn up and was never heard from again. “The same day Mr Farah contacted
Barclays Bank to alert them to a fraud. He pretended he was attempting to blow the whistle and he said he would go to the press if he was not given a reward of £40,000.” He pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to acquire, use or possess criminal property. Akram, who later worked at United National Bank in Birmingham, was found guilty of the same charge at a trial at the Old Bailey in London. Akram had left Barclays in August 2010, five months before the attempt to move £375,000 from Mr Prakash’s account. But when investigators examined his email archive they found messages linking him to Farah and several customer accounts. Other incriminating documents were found at his home on his arrest, including a Post-It note showing how the stolen money would be divided between seven people.
A 2.9 magnitude earthquake has struck the east Midlands, the British Geological Survey said on Friday 18 January. The tremor was reported across Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire. Julian Bukits of the BSG said the earthquake happened at 5.20am and was ''average'' for the UK. Leicestershire Police said they had received no reports of any tremors and had not been called out to any incidents. On October 28 2001 there was a 4.1 earthquake near Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, which Mr Bukits described as "big by UK standards". Putting this quake into perspective, the expert said it was a million times weaker than the 8.9 earthquake which struck off the Japanese coast, causing a devastating tsunami in March 2011. Earthquakes in the UK are described as intraplate seismic activity, as they take place far from tectonic plate boundaries.
Worker attempting to illegally sell Viagra given suspended jail sentence
A warehouse worker caught with a supply of Viagra he hoped to sell has been given a suspended jail sentence, the Leicester Mercury has reported. Imran Ali (26) allegedly obtained 500 tablets from a friend in India for £50. He planned to sell the blister packs, each containing 10 tablets, for about £10 each, Leicester Crown Court was told. However, he gave away 40 tablets to friends. Police stopped him in a car in the city centre and found him in possession of 460 tablets. Ali, of Trueway Road, Leicester, admitted possessing Viagra with intent to supply it when he was not authorised to do so, on October 11 last year. In mitigation, the court heard it was an amateur attempt by Ali to make a profit, but he was caught before he actually sold any. He was given a six-month jail sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered to complete 80 hours of unpaid work, the newspaper reported.
UK's first Sikh peer Lord Tarsem King passes away Hundreds of people including community leaders and members of the Parliament attended the funeral of UK's first Sikh peer, Lord Tarsem King (pictured), who died of a suspected heart attack on 9 January 2013, at Euston station in London. He was 75. Lord King served as a Councillor in Sandwell Council from 1979 to 2007; he was a deputy mayor from 1982 to 1983. He was created a life peer in 1999 as Baron King of West
Mourners outside Sandwell Valley Crematorium
Bromwich in the County of West Midlands. Community members and mourners paid tributes in his tearful adieu on Thursday 18 January. Notables such as Keith Vaz MP, Virendra Sharma MP and Tom Watson MP were there to pay their respects. Keith Vaz MP said Tarsem was a “the role model for every Asian politician” and represented the end of the great pioneers who came with
nothing and left with much”. Speaking at Lord King's funeral in West Bromwich, Virendra Sharma, MP described him as a kind, gentle and community oriented man and longstanding public servant. Sharma said, "I want to pay tribute to Lord King as a dedicated member who has made great contributions to Parliament and the community." "I have had a long association with Lord King and today, I am
saddened at the loss of a great man, friend and community and society leader," he said. Lord King was a very humble and compassionate man and very well respected. Lord King has left an extraordinary legacy that will be remembered by future generations, he added. Many people attended the funeral with screens set up outside the crematorium so that they could pay their last respects to the departed soul.
Funeral procession